Blood transfusion is associated with the development of alloantibodies. Routine blood grouping for multi-transfused patients with SCA should be extended to include other blood group antigens in addition to Rhesus D and ABO antigens.

No abstract

No abstract

No abstract

Haematological malignancies are major cause of mortality and morbidity worldwide. The aim of this review was to summarize some of the challenges that hamper proper diagnosis and management of haematological malignancies in Nigeria and how they affect outcome. MEDLINE Entrez PubMed, Google scholar and African Journals Online (AJOL) search were performed in April 2020 and studies that investigated challenges in diagnosis and management of haematological malignancies from 2005 to 2019 were sought. Search keywords included “haematological malignancies, challenges, Nigeria”. Only studies that provided information on the challenges of diagnosis and management of haematological malignancies in Nigeria were eligible and were selected. Inclusion criteria were original scientific investigations or case reports, not reviews, studies conducted in Nigeria between 2005 and 2019 and studies written in the English language. A total of eight relevant studies that fulfilled the study inclusion criteria were identified out of 4,129 studies found. Challenges of diagnosis and management of haematological malignancies reported by the studies include late presentation of patients in advanced stage of disease, inability to pay for investigations and/or treatment due to financial constraint, wrong/ delayed diagnosis due to poor diagnostic facility such as use of only morphology for histological diagnosis without immunohistochemistry and poorly equipped health facilities to manage haematological malignancies. Poor outcome as a result of those challenges were also reported by the studies. Awareness creation and education on the importance of early presentation to health facility should be encouraged. Health system should be strengthened by including haematological malignancies in National Health Insurance and providing well equipped health facility for proper diagnosis and management of haematological malignancies.

No abstract

No abstract

Background: Blood transfusion service is an indispensable component of health care. Despite the increased demand for blood, the supply of safe blood has been inadequate. Objective: The aim of this study is to determine the pattern of blood donation practices among medical students in Abakaliki. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study carried out at Ebonyi State University Abakaliki between October 2017 and March 2018. Stratified sampling technique was used to recruit participants from medical students using pre-tested, semi-structured, self-administered questionnaire, to assess their pattern of blood donation practices. Data was analysed using SPSS software, version 20. Results:  One hundred and fifty eight medical students who participated in the study were made up of 90 (58.4%) males and 68 (41.6%) females. The most prevalent age group was 20 to 25years. One hundred and forty three (93%) of the participants were single. The most common blood group was O Rh positive, followed by A Rh positive then B Rh positive while AB Rh negative was the least. Majority of the participants have never donated blood. The minority who have ever donated blood, donated either once or twice and the donation was made for a family member or friend. Conclusion: Participants were found to have poor pattern of blood donation practices. Misconception, fear, cultural and religious influences deter people from practicing voluntary non-remunerated blood donation. Conducting awareness and enlightenment programs regularly will help to keep them well informed and motivated to practice voluntary non-remunerated blood donation.